


Five Times Adam Made Ronan Laugh

by thesoundofnat



Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Fluff, Idiots in Love, Laughter, M/M, Pre-Slash, Tickling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-17
Updated: 2017-09-17
Packaged: 2018-12-31 00:18:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12120447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesoundofnat/pseuds/thesoundofnat
Summary: How it ended up with Ronan laughing - genuinelylaughingfor the first time in weeks - he wasn’t sure. But that was what was happening.And.Holy shit.That laugh was magical.





	Five Times Adam Made Ronan Laugh

**1.**

Adam hadn’t meant for it to come out as sarcastic as it did. He’d aimed for a playful comment to hide a deeper bitterness, but what had left his mouth had been anything but lighthearted, and for a moment he feared that someone would either get pissed at him, or ask him if he was okay. He didn’t want either of those things to happen.

How it ended up with Ronan laughing - genuinely  _laughing_ for the first time in weeks - he wasn’t sure.

But that was what was happening.

And.

_Holy shit._

That laugh was magical.

Adam wasn’t prone on gaping at people like a fool, and thankfully he managed to get control of his features before it became too obvious, but Ronan was still laughing, so it was hard keeping it cool.

Seriously, it hadn’t been  _that_ funny.

Gansey also seemed amused at Ronan practically doubling over and clutching his stomach, but Adam assumed that slightly fond smile was present due to him having been friends with the old Ronan. A different Ronan. One that grinned and laughed freely and joked around with his friends and family and didn’t look like he wanted to murder you 95% of the time. A less broken Ronan.

Adam felt like he was finally seeing a glimpse of that Ronan, there on the floor of Monmouth Manufacturing. He had to admit he liked him.

What he didn’t like was the knowing look Noah was throwing his way. How did he always know?

**2.**

Three weeks later and Adam had, somehow, forgotten all about the incident. They were in Ronan’s car, Adam in the passenger seat of course. They had about fifteen more minutes until they were at Adam’s apartment, and the silence would’ve maybe been awkward had Ronan not been drowning it out completely with his shitty music. Adam only kept his complaints to a minimum since he was giving him a ride.

But that didn’t stop him from scowling at particularly bad songs.

“Cheer up, Parrish,” Ronan told him after he’d caught sight of his dismay. “You’d think I’ve run over your cat or something.”

“You might as well have.”

Ronan shot him a look. “Oh?”

Adam pointed to the radio. “That sounds like a dying cat, Lynch.”

And rather than rolling his eyes or scoffing or even snapping at him, Ronan laughed.

Again.

It was definitely different from the last time Adam had made him laugh. It was calmer, for one. Barely doing more than making his body shake a little bit. He didn’t lose control of the car or throw his head back or clutch at his midriff. He just barked out a laugh or two, his lips not wider than a smile, and then returned his attention to the road.

It kept ringing in Adam’s ears for the rest of the night.

**3.**

It was silly how Adam could forget about a literal giggle fit and yet not be able to let go of a few seconds of laughter, but that was his current predicament, and it was driving him insane.

Whenever he looked at Ronan all he could think about was how the smooth skin on his face had been decorated with laughter lines, even if it had lasted so shortly. Maybe that was the reason he was obsessed. He’d only gotten a brief taste of it and now needed more.

God, he might be obsessed with Ronan’s laughter. Or at least with the idea of it. Neither option made his life easier.

Ronan was in a bad mood, but something told Adam this was more sorrow than anger. Nothing had set him off, and by this point Adam had learnt that Ronan’s default mode wasn’t rage, per se, but something else. Something that transformed into anger when provoked (which it often was).

He knew he should leave his friend alone. He knew from experience that he had absolutely no idea how to handle Ronan. He was no Gansey, and he was utterly aware of it.

But he couldn’t let him be. Not when he saw something so vulnerable on his face when he thought no one was looking.

He approached him slowly, knowing better than to straight out ask him what was wrong. There was no way Ronan would tell, and he would just be wasting time and scaring him off. It would help absolutely no one.

Ronan raised an eyebrow when he sat down beside him. They were all at Monmouth Manufacturing, but they might as well have been alone since everyone was sitting on their own, desperate for some calm and privacy after a hectic day. Adam was aware of the fact that Ronan might not want him here, but it was worth a try anyway. “Lynch.”

“Parrish,” Ronan replied, his voice steady, but his gaze questioning. “Didn’t know you preferred the floor to the couch.”

Adam waved a hand at him. “Gansey’s weirdly obsessed with me. He keeps leaning against me and it’s getting annoying.”

“Hey.” Gansey furrowed his brows at him, but relaxed when he realized he’d been joking. “Ronan’s rubbing off on you too much, Adam.”

Ronan snorted, but the smile he shot him wasn’t exactly genuine. “Just doing what I can. If anyone needs toughening up, it’s Parrish.”

“You know what? I’m gonna take that as a compliment.”

Ronan raised his hands. “As you should.”

“Because why would I believe that Ronan Lynch would say something mean to me? I mean, have you met him? Ronan Lynch is a sweetheart.”

Ronan almost looked angry now, and Adam was afraid he’d crossed a line, but then, just as he thought Ronan would either get up and leave or reach out to hit him, he laughed. For a second. A beautiful second.

And then he punched Adam on the shoulder, though not hard. “You’re so annoying, Parrish.”

Adam grinned. “You _are_ rubbing off on me.”

**4.**

“Do you think we’re gonna make it out alive?”

Ronan looked at him, his face completely blank. “From here?”

“From this whole thing,” Adam clarified. “I don’t know. I just have a feeling one of us is gonna die before we’re done with Glendower and Cabeswater. Or at least lose a limb.”

Ronan shifted where he was standing beside him. They were waiting for Gansey to finish getting the right equipment before entering the woods of Cabeswater for the umpteenth time, and Adam had had a bad feeling about everything all week. He didn’t want Gansey or Blue or Noah to know about his worries, but something about Ronan made him want to confess everything he kept in his heart, though he wasn’t sure why.

“I think we’re gonna be okay,” Ronan finally said.

“Do you really believe that or just saying it to make me feel better?”

“When do I ever say things just to make people feel better?”

Adam barked out a laugh. The first laugh he’d uttered all week. Maybe Ronan wasn’t the only one who needed to laugh more. “True.”

Ronan was wearing something slightly weaker than a smile now. “But seriously, Adam. I think we’re gonna be fine.”

Adam. Not Parrish. Somehow that small detail made him believe him.

“Now stop getting cold feet and get yourself together.”

Adam laughed again, harder this time, because he knew Ronan had added that to bring some normalcy into this entire thing, and it was working. “You’re a real charmer, you know. So comforting.”

And Ronan laughed right with him, and the others were very confused when they joined them a few seconds later.

**5.**

Adam wasn’t an affectionate person, and mind you neither was Ronan, so why they both seemed so okay with Adam having accidentally brushed his hand over his arm was beyond him, but he reckoned he should just be happy Ronan didn’t glare him to death. Instead, he’d done nothing, and Adam had gotten curious, and thankfully the others were way too preoccupied to notice the little game Adam had created. He wasn’t entirely sure how he would’ve explained it.

He was very casual about it; not really wanting Ronan to catch on. But with every seemingly accidental nudge, every brush of his fingers against a random body part, every knee against a knee left Ronan looking at him in a way Adam couldn’t fully interpret, and he was just thinking that maybe it was time to stop when a misplaced touch made Ronan recoil, and it had caught his attention too tightly for him to let it go. “What was that?”

“What was what?”

“You jumped.”

“You make no sense, Parrish.”

Adam narrowed his eyes at him. “Are you ticklish, Ronan Lynch?”

“Fuck off, you- go away!”

Adam had partly been kidding when he’d said it, but Ronan’s reaction to him reaching out was too great for him to have been wrong, and Adam found himself grinning almost smugly at him. “Well, this is interesting.”

“I am literally going to kill you. Pick a spot to be buried, Parrish.”

“Does Cabeswater count?”

“You goddamn nerd- stop it!”

Ronan was smiling almost helplessly whenever Adam moved closer, and Adam had to admit he adored it. Adored the foreshadow of laughter.

But it was nothing compared to the actual laughter.

Adam had barely touched him, and yet Ronan was now giggling like a maniac. Adam knew he wouldn’t have done it had the others been around, but right now they were alone, and a new side of Ronan appeared to greet Adam, albeit for just a moment.

When Ronan backed away from his hands Adam decided to drop it, though he was still smiling, and Ronan failed at his attempt to glare, so he just shook his head with a smile of his own that he was trying to desperately to conceal.

“Let me guess,” Adam said cheerfully. “You think I’m annoying.”

Ronan barked out a laugh that had probably still been bubbling in his throat from earlier. “You read my mind.”

“You have to admit I’m a little fun to be around, at least.”

“Keep dreaming, Adam.”

Adam. Not Parrish.

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on [tumblr](http://thesoundofnat.tumblr.com/)


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